Apparatus for the destructive distillation of oil-bearing materials



J2me 2 3 2 1 2 P. T. AL XANQER nPFAP-ATUS FOR THE DESTRUCTIVE DISTILLATION OF OIL BEARING MATERIALS Filed May 29 mmiz.

3 Sheets-Sheet 1 lnuanh r fad/aw P. r. ALEXANDER APPARATUS FOR THE nssmuc'nva msnumnow OF on BEARING MATERIALS Filed May 29, 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet. 2

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ame .24 @72 2 P. T. ALEXANIDER APPARATUS FOR THE DESTRUGTI E DISTILLATION OF OIL BEARING MATERIALS Filed May 29, 1922 5 Shee,ts5het 5 a o) yc i the several independent retort units are ALEXANDER, F SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOB OF O'NE-FO'U 0F SACRAMENTO,

PHILIP T. '10 ARTHUR E. MILLER,

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AI'YARATUS FOR THE DES'IBUGTIVE DISTILLATION 0F OIL-BEARING MATERIALS.

Application filed ma 29, 1922. Serial No. 564,493.

Toallwhom it may concern:

Be-it known a citizen of theUnited States, residing at Sacramento, in the county of Sacramento sand State of California, have invented cer- '20 caused-to continuously pass through material.

' ing the scrapers tain'new'and useful Improvements in Apparatus.for the Destructive Distillation of OiLBearing Materials,- of which the followring is a specification.

This invention relates to apparatus for the destructive distillation of oil bearing materials such as shale, peat, sand, coal, coal tar, gums, asphalt, natural and fractional oils of vegetable or minera ori' in, carbon bearing residues, and the like, an has particular reference to an improved "reduction furnace, comprising a plurality of independent units connected in series and 56 arranged that the oil. bearing material is the different units; thereby efiecting an eduction ofthe Volatile products of this invention is to provide this general character in winch An object a device of each provided with suitable scrapers for causin the oil-bearing material to travel over t e lower heated and to provide means for effectively drivduring the distillation process. I r

i In the destructive distillation of oil-bearing substances particularly organic shale, it is common in the art to use a series of retort .units superposedone on the other, connected at alternate ends to the underlying'unit, and to use within each of such units a conveyor or scrapgr which causes the oil-bearing material to traverse the unit and discharge into the next lower compartment or unit, and so on through the. several units in alternate directions until the bottom or discharge end. of the apparatus is reached. In such apparatus difficulties have been heretofore v experienced in the operation of the conveyors or scrapers because'of the fact that the'coke or other residuum of distillation tends to clog or gum the working parts-of the conveyors and thus materially effect the efficient operation of the apparatus. The present invention is particularly designed its principal object, the construction of the unit. and dr'wing mechanism for the conveyors or scrapers,

that I, Pnimr T. Annie-muse,

lignite,

fromthe oil-bearing surface of the unit carbons contained in wherein the Working parts of the drive mechanism are so placed that they cannot become clogged. or gummed by the accumulation ofcoke or other residuum.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part ofthisispecification and in which like numerals\ are empl parts throughout the several views,

Fig. 1 is a'sectional view in elevation of a distilling apparatus of the general char acter;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional View through one of the retort units, on the line 1 2-2 of Fig. 7

Fig. 3 is a fra mental sectional view on the line 33 of B ig. 2; v 1

Fig. 4 is a fragmental the linedt of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged detailed perspective view of the drive chain, showing the method sectional view on roller carriage;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged plan view of the ackin washer assembly, a portion of which is shown in section; an

Fig. 7 is a reduced side elevation of two of the individual reto'rt units.

Referring to the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration is shown a preferred example of my invention, I have shown in Fig. 1, a complete a paratus for the destructive distillation o oil-bearing materials,'comprising a plurality of super-. posed retort units 10 arrange within ;a suitable furnace structure 11, said furnace structure comprising an upper fire box 12 and a vertical stack 13. Arranged at a suitable plane inthe vertical stack 13 is afan blower 14 for drawing the heat and products of combustion from the firebox 12 in a circuitous path downwardly past the several 'retort'units within the furnace structure to heat the contents of the units and thus effect the eduction of the variou's'volatile' hydrothe material being treated. Each of the separate retort. unitsis provided with anoutletpip '15 leading to an aircooled condenser 16 and then to a water cooled condenser 17 of the usualtype, in which the volatile vapols the liquid state and then withdrawn to suitable storage receptacles.

Each of the separate retort units is connected at alternate ends to the underlying unit so that the oil-bearing substance is oyed to designate like a 'of mounting the chain and scrapers. on the are reduced to 1 ratus is reached. o:t' distillation is then deposited on the endcaused to travel lengthwise of the unit and then discharged into the next. lower unit and so on through the sevei-al units in alternate directions until the bottom and discharge end of the apparatus is reached.

lhe lowermost retort ot' the unit leads to a discharge or unloading device arranged at, the bottom of the furnace structure. This discharge niechanism comprises an elongated compartment provided with a central inlet opening. 18 and with an endless conveyor mechanism 19, driven by suitable mechanical means, not shown, and so controlled that the direction of its movement through the chain ber may be varied at will; At the lower part of this con'ipartment near the ends there of l providetwo valve-controlled outlet pipes 20 and 21, the lower ends of which extend into Water tanks 22 and respectlvely below the level of the Water C(Jiltlllfllth61611611 Arranged inproximitj," to the lower open ends of the outlet pipes 20 and 21. I further provided a pair of endless conveyors 24 for removing the residinnn of distillation from the tanks.

In the operation of this apparatus, the oil bearing material sue i as shale, peat, sand or the like is introduced into the uppermost retort unit at one end thereof and is caused to travel the length of the unit by suitable emails to be hereinafter described. This first unit discharges its contents into the next,

lower unit whe're the same traversing move ments of the oil-bearing material takes place. This movement continues throughout the en tire apparatus, the material t 'aveling lengthwise of each unit in alternate directions dur ing the heating or cracking operation until the lowern'iost or discharge end of the apps. The coke or other residuum less conveyor 19 and carried by said conveyor to either one of the discharge pipes 20 or 21. Assume, for the purpose of illustration, that the conveyor 19 is moving in a counter-clockwise direction and the valve in pipe 20 in open position, the residuum will then discharge into the tank 22. The immersion of the discharge pipes in the water provides an efi icient water seal which will prevent any discharge of the gases of distillation at this point, or the entrance of air. The residuum then falls on the conveyor 2i which removes the same from the tank. in practice it is preferable to discharge first into one tank until the same is filled and then into the other while the first tank is being emptied. This is readily accomplished by reversing the direction of inoveniient of the conveyor 19 and properly manipulating the valves in the dis charge pipes 20 and 21.

Referring specifically to the individual re tort units employed in the assembling of the apparatus above s'lescribed, it will he noted that each of said units comprises elongated,

relatively narrow chambers 25, each provided with a coverplate 26, detaohably secured to-thc body of the chamber by suitable fasteningmeans. Each unit is provided with an inlet pipe 27 and outlet pipe 53? arranged near the opposite ends thereof. Journaled at each end of the unit is a transverse drive shaft one end of one of said snat'ts'projecting through the side of the unit and beingconnected by means of suitable gearing or the'like with a suitable'soiu'ce of power. Sprocket wheels 29 are keyed to the shafts near the ends thereof and the pairs of sprocket wheels at opposite ends of the unit are connected by sprocket chains the construction of which is to behereinat'ter described. Theintcrior of each unit contains two longitudinally vertical partitions 30 each slightly spaced from the side walls of the unit, so that separate compartments are provided at each side of the unit for completel housing the drive mechanism. Each of the partitions 30 are out tl'irou h to form a con tinuous slot or passage 31 tluisniaking the middle portion 32 of the partition. slightly spaced from the remainder of the partition.

This central portion of the partition is supported through the inediunroi suitable I-beams 33 secured to the outer walls of the unit as clearly shown In Fig.

Connecting the two sprocket wheels arranged within each compartment, is a suit-- able link drive chain the detailed con-- struction of which is clearly shown in F 5. In order to provide free and easy move ment of the" sprocket chains the same are connected at spaced intervals to a two Wheeled carriage 35 adapted to travel with in the runway formed by the bosses at integral with the inner sides of the retort unit. Each carriage 35 has projecting inwardly therefrom a flight arm 3? which extends through the opening ill in the partition illlti has secured thereto a scraper blade 38. This blade 38 is substantially rectangular and. carries at its outer edge a strip 39 of manga nese steel or other wear resisting material. It is thus obvious that upon the rotation. of the sprocket 29, the chain will cause the scrapers 38 to traverse the entire length of the retort unit and thus convey the oil been ing material from the inlet end of the unit to the discharge end of the same.

As a means tonprevcnting the oil-bearing material from entering the compartments cpntaining the above-described drive niechaism, where its presence would tend to clog or gum the mechanism and thus render the apparatus inoperative, I provide an endless flexible guard member adapted to completely close the slot 1 The detailed construction of this guard device is clearly shown in Figures 3 and 5 of the drawings, from which it will be seen that the saine comprises a laminated structure consisting ii ll l G d of a plurality of connected links. In the assembly of this guard device the outer links and filler links Q1 are slightly higher than the centrally disposed links thus forming substantially upper and lower grooves, the outer edges of which straddle the upper and lower edges of the slot 31 as clearly shown in Fig. 2, thus forming a complete seal for the slot 31. The flight arms 37 extend entirely through the guard members at spaced intervals and into the working chamber of the unit and movement of the scrapers causes the guard member to move with the same and thus continuously traverse the slot 31 during the operation of the unit as above described;

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown and described is to be taken as a preferred example of the same and that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to Without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoincd claims. I

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A retort unit for multi-chambered reduction furnaces, comprising an elongated relatively narrow chamber, vertically arranged partitions within-said chamber,'a series of scrapers arranged centrally of the unit between said partitions, drive mechamoved with the scrapers along said endless slots to completely close the same.

2. A retort unit for multi-chambered reduction furnaces, comprising an elongated,

relatively narrow chamber, scrapers adapted to traverse said unit, drive means for said scrapers, arms connecting said scrapers and drive means, a partition between the scrapers and drive means having an endless 'slot, therein, and an endless guard member comprising a plurality of connected links adapted to be moved along the slot to completely close the same. r

3. A retort unit for multi-chambered reduction furnaces,-com rising an elongated, relatively narrow cham er; scrapers adapted to traverse said chamber; drive means for said scrapers; arms connecting said scrapers and drive means; a partition between the scraperssand drive means having an endless slot therein; and a flexible guard member comprising a plurality of connected links slightly spaced from each other and filler links arranged between the said links, to completely seal the slot in the said partition.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature. PHILIP. T. ALEXANDER. 

